21 research outputs found
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Clustering and networking among small independent hotels: developments over ten years
This paper reports on networking activities amongst a cluster of independent hotels with a view to analysing key variables in network development for SMEs. A comparative, longitudinal element is introduced by reference to an earlier study of the same phenomenon, ten years earlier. Of particular interest is the influence of various forms of social capital in the development of informal networks and the inter-play between co-operation and competition over time. Given the time gap between the two studies, the effect of sectoral changes on network development is also examined. The research revisits and extends a previous study of many of the same hotels which were investigated in 1995 over their formal and informal links that were found to be influenced by such factors across two classifications - the business as unit (proximity, perceptions of quality) and the individual respondent (personal social networks and ethnicity). Extending that analysis, social capital concepts and relevant references to embedded networks and kinship groups and co-operative game rules will be introduced in this paper.
A highly concentrated population of small, independent hotels in Central London had been identified in the previous research project and it is from this sample that the current research drew and extended its own sample of hotels. With such a high number of hotels in the area a mixture of ‘snowball’ sampling and self-selection was successfully employed. Of the original 29 hotels, 22 have been re-interviewed and complemented by another 19. Of the remainder of the original sample, several had subsequently merged or failed to survive the intervening period. Face-to-face interviews were conducted with owner-managers in all cases using a structured questionnaire that replicated as much as possible of the original questionnaire, with both open and closed questions to allow some individual expression on relevant topics. The quantitative data obtained will be analysed using UCINET software to generate visual representations of networks alongside statistical and cluster analyses.
Both academic and policy implications are likely to arise from this research, such as novel insights from such an unique periodic comparison of networks development, the influence of social capital on (formal and informal) network activities and the changing influence and consolidation of hotel groups through mergers and franchising
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Formalizing relationships? Time, change and the psychological contract in team enterpreneurial companies
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Corporate social responsibility and the social enterprise
NoIn this article, we contend that due to their size and emphasis upon addressing external social concerns, the corporate relationship between social enterprises, social awareness and action is more complex than whether or not these organisations engage in corporate social responsibility (CSR). This includes organisations that place less emphasis on CSR as well as other organisations that may be very proficient in CSR initiatives, but are less successful in recording practices. In this context, we identify a number of internal CSR markers that may be applied to measuring the extent to which internal CSR practices are being observed. These considerations may be contrasted with the evidence that community based CSR activities is often well developed in private sector small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) (Observatory of European SMEs, 2002), a situation which may be replicated in social enterprises especially those that have grown from micro-enterprises embedded in local communities. We place particular emphasis upon the implications for employee management. Underpinning our position is the Aristotelian-informed capabilities approach, a theory of human development and quality of life, developed by Sen (1992; 1999) and Nussbaum (1999) which has been developed further, in an organisational context, (e.g., Cornelius, 2002); Cornelius and Gagnon, 2004; Gagnon and Cornelius, 1999; Vogt, 2005. We contend that the capabilities approach offers additional insights into CSR in social enterprises in general and internal CSR activity in particular. Our article concludes with proposals for future research initiatives and reflections upon social enterprise development from a capabilities perspective